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Tijuana
Tijuana is a largely ruined city on the pre-War border of California and Baja California, and it is the most northern point of Ruta del Negrero. Known even before the war for its prostitution, Tijuana has been part of El Triángulo de Vicios for centuries under the control of vicious cartels who have recently come into conflict with the nearby NCR. Currently, Tijuana is under the thumb of a NCR occupation that seeks to pacify the city and finally tame its criminal element which remains at war with itself. Nevertheless, the city has retained its sleazy character with its own certain charm. History Colonial Era Border Town The Great War The Long Bloodshed Rule of the Jefes NCR Occupation Government For most of its pre-War history, Tijuana was held under the thumb of various cartels and jefes. These “governments” were either strongmen or loose hierarchies who all ran a sort of protection racket for the people of Tijuana. Those in charge cared very little for those de-jure under their rule, but they did do the bare minimum in protecting Tijuaneros from the trash of the wasteland. Tijuaneros have not had an elected leader since the Great War, but they have killed those in power who have mistreated them before so that threat remains. The recent invasion by the NCR has shaken things up in Tijuana quite significantly. Tijuana was supposedly put under military occupation by the NCR because many within the Republic were worried that Caesar’s Legion would invade the unstable Triangle of Vices to then plunge deep into undefended NCR territory. Despite that worry, Tijuana has been under military occupation of the NCR for about a decade with Governor Schmidt in charge as a sort of benevolent despot with no Legion attack. The transition to democracy has been slow, but the New California Republic still promises free and open elections to the people of Tijuana someday. This is in spite of Tijuaneros having to already pay taxes and being educated by NCR teachers. In Tijuana, Governor Schmidt is often characterized as a dictablanda, and the residents of the city, the Tijuaneros, are mostly indifferent to the occupation besides some cultural tensions. Economy The economy of post-War Tijuana has always been based off trade through Carretera Federal though chems and prostitution are also big industries. Before the occupation, the two latter industries operated in the open under the auspices of the cartels and jefes. After the NCR’s invasion, chems and prostitution are still big but forced to operate in the shadows. The NCR’s attempts to combat illegal industries and give Tijuaneros more opportunities besides working for the jefes or a cartel have had little success so far. Before the Great War, Tijuana was a large manufacturing center, and the NCR (Governor Schmidt especially) hopes to restore the city’s old industrial parks to finally pry Tijuaneros from the grasp of the criminal underworld. Culture Census and Racial Diversity The NCR occupation has never taken a formal census of Tijuana’s population but estimate it to be in the thousands. The vast majority of the city are Mexican (about 85%) while a smaller number are either Californian or unknown (about 15%). The Mexicans of Tijuana, known as Tijuaneros, are overwhelmingly Hispanic of mixed heritage. The Californians in Tijuana have been around for generations, but they increased in number dramatically after NCR began its occupation to either help with administration or make a quick buck. The Californians are mostly white with some Asians mixed in. Ghouls in Tijuana have a very small population as many locals demonize them for their appearance or their feral counterparts who were exterminated long ago. The ghouls who have survived keep an understandably low profile. Super mutants and other mutated humans have little to no presence in Tijuana except for the occasional traveler. Language Language in Tijuana has been a fluid entity for a long time. Most locals speak Spanish as a first language but are able to slip into English or Spanglish (a creole of Spanish and English) if necessary. The Californians almost uniformly speak only English with few exceptions. Fully bilingual individuals are highly valued by NCR, but many bilingual locals avoid the osos, knowing the price collaboration might bring. Indigenous languages are common among traders from further south in Mexico, but they have little permenant presence. Religion Tijuana had little in the way of organized religion before the NCR occupation began. In the past, religion was the last thing many lusty people in Tijuana had on their minds. Occultism was an occasional feature in Tijuana but never held real influence. Only a few reclusive residents practiced Roman Catholicism or a form of saint worship away from the sin of Tijuana. One figure in particular to retain worshippers was Juan Soldado, who retained much of his pre-War following in Tijuana and other parts of the Mexican border. That was until the arrival of NCR and the establishment of the First Baptist Church by devout NCR troopers in the old Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Seeing this led to a knee jerk reactionary backlash from many angry Mexicans, and there are now many Catholics in Tijuana again, along with an upsurge in the saint cults of Juan Soldado and Santa Muerte. Even one of the jefes, Hassan, attends Mass alongside other locals. Religion has currently become a political issue with locals frequently taking note of who attends the First Baptist Church and who attends the local Catholic churches. This religious conflict has also fueled sympathy for the National Catholic Vanguardistas and the rebels on Tijuana’s outskirts they support, led by Gonzalez. Nevertheless, the non-religious also make up a large contingent in Tijuana including those who still want to pay and sell sex, remain skeptical, or just survive. Points of Interest Armas y Suministros de Samuel One of the few reactivated industrial parks, Armas y Suministros de Samuel (Samuel’s Supply and Guns) is one of the NCR’s precious few success stories in Tijuana. Camp Peterson The NCR’s occupation of Tijuana has affected Tijuana in many ways, and the former San Ysidro Port of Entry, now known as Camp Peterson, is perhaps the most affected. The first part of Tijuana to be seized by NCR, Camp Peterson is the center of NCR military might in Tijuana. The majority of Californians in the city live in or around Camp Peterson, having faith in numbers. The NCR military has fortified the former border crossing enough to make it a little slice of California in Mexico. La Coahuila Named for the avenue that runs through it, La Coahuila is the name for Tijuana’s primary destination for prostitution and the site of many brothels. Before the NCR occupation, the brothels in La Coahuila were Tijuana’s main attraction and operated quite openly under the protection of various jefes and cartels. Nowadays, the brothels in La Coahuila are forced to operate in the shadows as bars and often supplement their income through chem sales. Most of them answer to Hassan though a few are either Spinoza’s, Cinderella’s, or independent. La Coahuila has always been Tijuana’s most dangerous area outside of perhaps more fought-over parts of downtown. The NCR mostly stays out of the area aside from the occasional incursion to make shows of force. Cristo de los Álamos, Parroquia de San Martín de Porres Downtown The post-War downtown of Tijuana, known before the war as the Centro borough, is where the largest concentration of the population resides. It is also the location of much of Tijuana’s important landmarks and where the criminal underworld is the strongest. The NCR military presence in downtown Tijuana is usually fairly light unless there is conflict between the jefes or cartels. There are a few NCR checkpoints around downtown, but they rarely interfere with the locals’ day to day lives. The Mexican Tijuaneros, who make up the majority of downtown, live relatively well though in worse conditions than the average Californian Tijuanero. Most are employed in some element of the cartels or in the brothels of La Coahuila. The First Baptist Church Hassan’s Compound All good jefes have a secure center of operations, and Hassan is no exception. Built before the war as an upscale gated private residence and taken over by Hassan in his youth from scavengers, the compound has weathered the NCR occupation surprisingly well. La Mona Puerta Blanca Cemetery An old pre-War cemetery, Puerta Blanca Cemetery is now not a place where the dead are buried but instead are honored. In particular, the local saint Juan Soldado has a place of great significance in the cemetery where he is often honored. There are two chapels dedicated to Juan Soldado in the cemetery; the first one is the edge of the cemetery where he died while the second chapel is for all to enter and is where it says he is buried. The most frequent visitors to the cemetery are Catholic cultists and Vanguardistas who both revere the saint in their own ways. Sor Teo El Tubo Oxidado The Tijuana Ball Notable Individuals Alejandro “La Mano de Hierro” Alejandro “La Mano de Hierro” (also known as ”Ironhand”) is a prominent member of Jefe’s Hassan’s cartel, acting both as a capo and a sicario for the jefe. The bastard of a slave girl and an Enclave soldier, Alejandro was born into adversity and fought his way up Tijuana’s hierarchy from practically nothing. This was particularly hard at the one point when Alejandro lost his right arm. However, Alejandro managed to prove himself useful enough to Jefe Hassan that he got a replacement for his arm and now serves a prominent member of the jefe’s cartel. A quiet but ruthless man, Alejandro has few loves in this world besides killing, caps, and the occasional queso. Alejandro harbors a deep hatred for NCR, both for invading his home and killing off his father’s people. Born in 2251, Alejandro was born in Tijuana to a slave mother and a father who did not want him. The baby’s father was an Enclave veteran who had survived along with some other soldiers and had established themselves as mercenaries in Tijuana. These mercenaries, known as Border Patrol, had their base at the former San Ysidro Port of Entry, and that was where Alejandro was born. For about five years, Border Patrol remained at San Ysidro with little Alejandro being raised by his mother Penelope. Alejandro’s father never paid him any attention, and the grizzled mercenary can now not even recall his father’s name. Perhaps his mother knew, but she is dead. When Alejandro turned five, his father and the rest of the Enclave veterans abruptly fled Tijuana south into the desert. Ranger Calhoun Ranger Calhoun is part of the NCR ranger contingent still in Tijuana after the majority departed for the Mojave. To say Calhoun holds some extreme views would be an understatement. The ranger sees the NCR occupation as a fool’s errand since he believes Mexicans (particularly the ones in Tijuana) do not respond well to the democracy that the NCR promises. Calhoun instead believes that the locals only respect strength through people like the cartels, Aníbal, and Caesar, and if the NCR is unwilling to use necessary force, the occupation will be doomed to fail. An honest man who is also a good ranger, Calhoun has nonetheless made himself many enemies within both the NCR occupation and among the residents of Tijuana for his vocal disdain for Mexicans and his authoritarian views. Reverend Charles Ray Reverend Charles Ray is the pastor of the First Baptist Church in Tijuana and an NCR Army veteran. Originally from Shady Sands, Charles joined the army at a young age and was pinged around NCR’s various wars around the Core Region. The things Charles saw sent him searching for meaning, and he eventually found God. At the end of Charles’s enlistment while serving in Tijuana, Charles decided to train to become a reverend for the local troops. Currently, Charles services the local First Baptist Church, formerly in the Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Inadvertently, that has made him a target of local sectarians who see Protestants as the enemy just as much as Califorños. Lieutenant Daniel Gabriel Gonzalez Lieutenant Daniel Gabriel Gonzalez is a guerrilla leader who is leading a Mexican rebel group to free Tijuana from the grip of the NCR occupation. Trained by the Vanguardistas of Mexicali, the lieutenant is only loosely aligned with the clerico-fascists but ultimately answers to them. He is a charismatic man who is well-read and can play a crowd, but Daniel ultimately lacks the resources to take Tijuana unless he is backed by either popular revolt or one of the cartels. Since Daniel refuses to work with the cartels out of principle, he can only continue to fight and hope the people of Tijuana will rise up. Governor Hadrian Schmidt Governor Hadrian Schmidt is the New Californian administrator in charge of the NCR occupation of Tijuana, at least officially. A veteran turned bureaucrat, Schmidt served his time in the NCR Army before being promoted out of active service and into the position of military governor of Tijuana. Hadrian Schmidt is a cautious but idealistic man who is out of his element in the snake pit that is Tijuana, but his good nature and lenient attitude has actually somewhat endeared him to many of the residents of the city he governs. Jefe Hassan Jefe Hassan is in charge of the largest cartel in Tijuana, and he is possibly the most influential man in the city except for perhaps Colonel Wagner. Already living a king’s lifestyle before the NCR occupation, Hassan simply took his cartel underground after the NCR’s arrival and has continued his lucrative businesses for years under the Bear’s nose. This includes chems, prostitution, and arms dealing. His henchmen are infamous on Tijuana’s streets and are feared by both NCR and other cartels. Although his grip has been threatened by the recent rise of Jefe Spinoza and increased NCR scrutiny, Hassan looks to be sticking around for a while if the occupation does not take a much harsher turn. Hassan’s ancestors came to Mexico in the early 20th century from Lebanon. The first couple of them arrived in Veracruz, but they would later settle down in the small town of Tijuana on the US-Mexican border. They would stick it out for centuries after that, through the Mexican Revolution, the US occupation, and the Great War. Hassan is very proud of his family’s immigrant success story and their perseverance. It is perhaps ironic then that his family’s surname has been lost to time. José Antonio José Antonio is an elite comandante within Jefe Hassan’s cartel and the leader of his “Esbirros”. A longtime friend and confidante of Hassan, José Antonio is a bit more volatile than his friend who strives keeps José’s worst impulses on a mercifully short leash. José and the Esbirros were doing Hassan’s dirty work in Tijuana before the NCR occupation and have continued to do so afterwards, even under heightened scrutiny. José has an intense dislike for NCR and frequently gets in incidents with them, which Hassan has to clean up for him. Leticia Leticia is a lonely prostitute under the protection of Jefe Spinoza and his cartel. Born in Tijuana to a prostitute, Leticia has always been in the business in one way or another. She has never felt a close connection to anyone, even her mother (who forced her into prostitution). However, Leticia has begun to warm up to a certain Califorño, but she keeps this on the down low. Ranger Malik Hernandez Ranger Malik Hernandez is part of the NCR ranger contingent still in Tijuana after the majority departed for the Mojave. Born in the Glow, Malik Hernandez grew up near the NCR’s southern border and learned both English and Spanish as a child. That made him the perfect Ranger for the assignment when the NCR occupation of Tijuana required rangers. However, Malik’s loyalties, first tested by the brutalities of the initial occupation, have been switched by Jefe Hassan’s caps, and he has subsequently acted as a mole within the NCR occupation for the cartel. Malik rationalizes this by thinking of himself as “feeling betrayed” by the NCR for its admittedly harsh treatment of Tijuana in comparison to previous territories the Republic expanded into. Jefe Mateo Spinoza Jefe Mateo Spinoza is the amiable head of the upstart cartel in Tijuana, formed from the remnants of other cartels shattered in the initial attack that secured the NCR occupation. Just a money guy before the NCR’s arrival, Spinoza formed the remnants of various smaller shattered Tijuana cartels into a force to be reckoned with. Heavily involved in prostitution and racketeering, Spinoza runs his business from the seedy “bar” El Tubo Oxidado along with his partner in crime Valeria Perez Florentino. The lesser of the jefes in Tijuana, Spinoza is hoping to usurp Hassan’s position as top dog and his wealth, and he is not afraid to use NCR to do so, however risky that may be. Valeria Perez Florentino Valeria Perez Florentino is Jefe Spinoza’s capo and his lover. Valeria is generally seen as the most “approachable” member of the cartels in Tijuana and has been known to assist NCR in helping residents, to Spinoza’s chagrin. Her organizational skills and total loyalty to her jefe offset her bleeding heart however, and she remains Spinoza’s strong right hand to this day. Colonel Wagner Colonel Wagner is the New Californian military officer in charge of the NCR occupation of Tijuana, wielding both real and imagined power. Part of President Kimball’s breed of warhawks, Wagner is been eager to clash with whatever dangerous factions Baja California has had to offer. So naturally, Wagner has grown rather bored with the long NCR occupation of Tijuana and Governor Schmidt’s rather conciliatory approach. Nevertheless, he remains dedicated to his job and remains an annoyance to both the locals and the occupation for his occasional shows of overwhelming force to make “a point” against the cartels. He spends most of his days studying reports from Rangers further into Baja or awaiting the next big action against the cartels. Xquenda Xquenda is a Zapotec capo of the Cinderella Cartel and the “rey” of the cartel’s small plaza in Tijuana. By far the most discreet cartel leader in Tijuana, Xquenda operates much more quietly than Hassan or Spinoza, not wishing to disrupt the lucrative chem trade his cartel has going through the city to the NCR. However, Xquenda is still quite willing to fight if necessary and has defended his turf on numerous occasions against the other two cartels in Tijuana. Quotes By About Category:Mexico Category:Baja Category:Communities